Under 9s Friendly – Southgate CC vs Enfield CC
It’s not often you have 8 players making their Southgate CC debut in one game, however that’s what happened on Sunday when Southgate Under 9s played their first game vs Enfield CC.
Once 20 minutes of rain (the first for a month!) had come and gone we got out there in the glorious sunshine. We agreed not to score the match as the focus was on learning how to play in a game environment. However, one of the Southgate parents (who will remain anonymous…) helpfully, secretly kept score!
Southgate bowled first and got off to a super start with Samrudh steaming in and hitting the wickets with his very first ball! As the Southgate bowlers rotated round they all bowled with accuracy and allowed very few runs to be scored off the bat. The highlight of the innings was Southgate’s catching with 5 brilliant caught dismissals including 2 sharp catches behind the wickets by Seb and a one handed showstopper on the boundary by Pabiru! It was noted that maybe next time he uses two hands, but the cameras loved the style and the crown went wild!
In the end Southgate took 6 wickets and Enfield scored 29 runs from the bat.
When Southgate came to bat Samrudh and Pabiru got them off to a great start taking quick singles from almost every ball. Pabiru clearly inspired, playing on the same wicket his father had struck a mighty 194* only the day before. This pair scored 20 runs and lost 2 wickets.
Then came the twins, Alfie and Leo who both speedy between the wickets made use of good calling and aggressive running. There first attempt to run a 2 was inspired! The second attempt, unfortunately a little too risky and they lost their only wicket to a run out. Thanks to some lovely offside drives, the pair scored 22 runs for the loss of 1 wicket.
Next came the big hitters, Will and Seb. Taking a different approach they didn’t bother to run quick singles. Instead, they each hit a number of boundaries both 4s and 6s. Highlights were Seb’s huge 6 over square leg and Wills exquisite drive over cover point for 4. The pair hit 37 runs for the loss of one wicket.
The final pair were Jivan and Kiaan who, after a couple of early boundaries, again made the most of quick singles for most of their 17 runs. The amazing achievement for this pair was that they didn’t give away a single wicket!
Though scores were not being kept… it was a very impressive performance from this newly formed under 9s team. We can expect great things from this age group as they continue their Southgate CC journey.
A final note. 4 of the 8 children playing in the game had mums who also represented Southgate Women’s Team over the weekend! This bodes really well for the future of Southgate CC as we look to move forward with all sections of this great club!